Ligue 1: Unai Emery Will Return To Paris Saint-Germain Next Season

ARIS, FRANCE - MAY 27: Supporters of PSG during the French Cup final (Coupe de France) between Paris Saint-Germain and SCO Angers at Stade de France on May 27, 2017 in Saint-Denis near Paris, France. (Photo by Jean Catuffe/Getty Images)

We all thought that the Unai Emery era at Paris Saint-Germain would be grinded to a halt after a disappointing campaign. Boy, were we proven wrong. After PSG won its 11th Coupe de France on a 1-0 shutout win over Stephane Moulin’s Angers SCO, owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi backed the embattled former Sevilla FC manager.

“I have always said he will remain in charge,” Al-Khelaifi said. “It is 200 percent certain he will stay in place. We are happy with him and he is happy to be here. We want to work together next season. We are going to change some things moving forward but this is not the time to talk about that. There will be changes. We want to enjoy this title, which has been well deserved after a difficult campaign.”

Issa Cissokho will take the fall at Angers for scoring an own goal in the first minute of second half stoppage time. Pressured by BlaiseMatuidi, one of a number of players who failed to step up in terms of finishing alongside Angel Di Maria and Edinson Cavani, the Senegalese committed a howler that allowed PSG to make history as the first club to win 11 Coupes de France.

The captain, Thiago Silva, turned in a very impressive performance as captain of the side and may receive a new deal as a reward. The same can be said of Marco Verratti, whose shift may have been ordinary, but good enough to get some talks out of the way. Others, such as Serge Aurier and Marquinhos, may have played their final games with the club, with the likes of Manchester United knocking on the door. Retiring star Maxwell Scherrer lifted the trophy one last time postmatch and will force the club to look for a new solution at left back.

Up next for Paris Saint-Germain is International Champions Cup action. PSG face AS Roma on July 19 at ComericA Park in Detroit, MI, Tottenham Hotspur at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, FL on July 22 and Juventus at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, FL on July 26.

Jo-Ryan Salazar is a writer for The Stoppage Time, a soccer blog powered by Azteca Soccer. A supporter of the Los Angeles Galaxy since 1996 and a committed supporter since 2002, Jo-Ryan also follows Chelsea FC, Melbourne Victory, FC Tokyo and Paris Saint-Germain. Apart from soccer, Jo-Ryan is an administrative assistant for a local nonprofit in Long Beach, California and also does photography, photo-editing and fictional writing.